Pinstripes & Chains Tam

Pinstripes & Chains Tam by Joy Gerhardt

What is Being Made

The Pinstripes & Chains Tam is a beret-style knitted hat designed by Joy Gerhardt. This intermediate-level knitting project creates a sophisticated tam with vertical pinstripe colorwork detailing. The pattern is available in three sizes to fit head circumferences of 18 [20, 22]" (46 [51, 56]cm), with a flat circumference of 28 [30, 32]" (71 [76, 82]cm). The tam features a classic beret silhouette and is designed as part of a matching set that includes coordinating mitts, making it an excellent project for coordinated winter accessories.

Techniques Used

This pattern employs slipped-stitch colorwork as its primary technique, which creates the visual illusion of traditional stranded colorwork while simplifying the knitting process. Rather than working with multiple colors simultaneously, the slipped-stitch method allows the knitter to work with only one color at a time, making it an accessible entry point into color knitting for those who find stranded colorwork intimidating. The vertical pinstripes created through this technique are less common in knitting than horizontal stripes, giving the finished tam a distinctive appearance. The pattern also incorporates shaping techniques typical of hat construction, including decreases to form the crown of the beret.

Stitches Used

The pattern utilizes slipped stitches as the foundation of its colorwork technique. Standard knitting stitches form the base structure, with the slipped-stitch method creating the pinstripe effect throughout the body of the hat. The pattern includes stitch markers to help track pattern repeats and shaping sections during construction.

Materials

This tam is knitted using Brown Sheep Lanaloft Sports yarn, a sport-weight yarn that provides 145 yards (133 meters) per 50-gram ball. The pattern calls for one ball each of two colors: LL45S Manhattan Mist (main color) and LL51S Thunder Bay (contrasting color). The recommended gauge is 22 stitches and 38 rows over 4 inches (10cm) in the pinstripe pattern after blocking. Knitting is worked on US 4 (3.5mm) double-pointed needles and a circular needle. Additional supplies include a cable needle, yarn needle, and 6 stitch markers for tracking progress throughout the project.